Detroit Tigers' Alex Avila celebrates as he crosses the plate in front of Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez after hitting a two-run home run in the ninth inning on July 12 in Kansas City, Mo.AP Photo

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Detroit Tigers catcher Alex Avila is arguably one of the best defensive catchers in the American League.

Need proof? His defensive WAR (7.6) ranks tied for fifth-best in baseball. He's thrown out 34.7 percent of would-be basestealers, which ranks third-best in baseball. And his catchers ERA (4.13) ranks 11th among qualified catchers in baseball.

There's no doubt about it: Avila is one of the best defensive catchers in baseball.

But that doesn't overshadow the fact that he can't hit lefties. Pure and simple.

That's not to say Avila isn't a good hitter. Because he is. Particularly when compared to other catchers in the American League.

Despite a .219 batting average that screams less-than-mediocre, Avila owns a .328 on-base percentage, which ranks second in the league among qualified catchers, largely because he's drawn a team-high 38 walks.

But his OBP could be a lot better. Particularly if Tigers manager Brad Ausmus stopped penciling Avila in the starting lineup against left-handed starting pitchers.

In 74 at-bats against left-handed pitchers this season, Avila has struck out 31 times. In other words, he has struck out 42 percent of the time against lefties.

That proved to be the case Friday when Avila had two at-bats against Angels left-handed starter Tyler Skaggs. The result: 0 for 2 with a strikeout.

"I don't know if there is a take -- other than he's scuffled against lefties," said Ausmus when asked Friday to explain Avila's struggles against southpaws.

Ausmus was asked a follow-up question about whether he's considered the idea of sitting Avila against left-handed pitchers on a consistent basis.

"I've thought about it," Ausmus admitted. "Skaggs was actually a lefty where lefties hit better than righties, so I thought that might help out in regards to Alex."

It didn't. Despite reverse splits that indicate Skaggs has more difficulty against left-handed hitters (.300) than righties (.251), Avila still struggled.

"You try to do what you can as far as learning from the mistakes you make, whether it's at the plate or behind the plate," Avila said after the Tigers' 2-1 loss Friday. "So you can figure out how to do a better job the next day."

Avila is fully aware of his struggles against lefties. And he is working diligently to improve. But while he's learning on the job, valuable runs are being left off the board. Bottom line: It's time for Ausmus to reconsider how he should use Avila.

The problem? Backup catcher Bryan Holaday isn't any better against lefties than Avila. In 47 at-bats against southpaws, Holaday has hit .191 with 11 strikeouts.

That said, there are a couple alternatives in the minors. Catching prospect James McCann is an option. He's hit .359 off southpaws in Triple-A Toledo this year.

Ramon Cabrera, a switch-hitter in Double-A Erie, is another option, albeit a worse one. He's batted .305 against lefties, too. Would the Tigers consider calling up either one?

Possibly. But both are young, and both won't match the defense that Avila brings to the table. And that's a valuable skill set that neither Ausmus or Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski may be willing to give up.

"People forget that, from a catching perspective, it's hard to find a guy that's a .300-type hitter," Dombrowski said earlier this week, "but also plays good defense, which he's done very well for us."

That's absolutely true. There's no discounting what Avila has done behind the plate. But the Tigers can no longer ignore what Avila has failed to do at the plate.